The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada will issue a charitable tax receipt for donations that qualify as charitable gifts.
If the donor receives a direct benefit from a gift, the amount of the charitable tax receipt issued by the EFC, will be equal to the sum total of the gift minus the amount of the personal benefit received by the donor. The maximum personal benefit allowed is 80% of the amount donated to charity, see the Gifts and Income Tax section of the Canada Revenue Agency's Gifts and Income Tax guide.
a. Year-end Donations - Charitable tax receipts will normally be dated in the year the cheque, or other asset, is received by the EFC. Gifts received in January qualify for a charitable tax receipt which is back-dated to December of the year before, if the postmark on the outer envelope is December 31st of the year prior or earlier.
Rationale: The EFC has been issued a Charitable Registration Number by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), which permits the EFC to issue charitable tax receipts. The ability to issue receipts for charitable gifts and the issuance of charitable tax receipts are governed by the CRA, federal and provincial statutes, and the EFC policy. A gift, for purposes of the Income Tax Act, is a voluntary “transfer of property” for which the donor expects and receives nothing of value in return (except as noted above).
b. Qualifying Donations as a Charitable Gift - The EFC has the right to a 10-day period from the time the gift arrives at the EFC office, to evaluate gifts to determine that a gift indeed qualifies as a charitable gift and that it supports the EFC’s aims, objectives and policies. If for any reason it is ascertained that a gift is non-qualifying, the EFC may return a gift to the donor without obligation to issue a charitable tax receipt or other action.
c. Name on Charitable Tax Receipts - Canada Revenue Agency requires that charitable tax receipts be made out in the following manner:
- If the cheque is drawn on a personal account, the charitable tax receipt must be issued to the person who signed the cheque.
- If the cheque signer is the spouse of an existing donor on the EFC’s records system, then the donation is entered into the existing record, rather than creating an additional record for the cheque-signer.
- If the individual who signed the cheque states in writing that they are acting as agent for another party that made the contribution and that the cheque-signer is only forwarding funds on to the EFC, the receipt is issued to the specified donor.
- If a cheque is issued by a business the receipt will only be issued in the name of the business.